NCAA Tournament: Sweet Sixteen Power Rankings
Teams 9 and 10
Sweet Sixteen Appearance: 10th (First since 2010)
Head Coach: Matt Painter, 265-141 (12th Season)
Top Players: F Caleb Swanigan: 18.5 ppg, 12.6 rpg (Big Ten Player of the Year); G Dakota Mathias: 9.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 3.7 apg (Big Ten Defensive Team); F Vince Edwards: 12.7 ppg, 5 rpg (Big Ten Honorable Mention).
How they got here: Purdue opened the first round by beating 13-seed Vermont 80-70. They followed that up with a 80-76 victory over 5-seed Iowa State in the second round.
Best Case Scenario: Caleb Swanigan and Purdue continue to be more than containable against Kansas in the Sweet 16. Swanigan and Brooks then go head-to-head in the Elite 8 in a classic battle that Purdue pulls out.
Playing in their first Final Four since 1980, the Boilmakers run into the Tar Heels of North Carolina. Isaiah Hicks and Kennedy Meeks are too much for Swanigan to handle and Purdue falls in Phoenix.
Sweet Sixteen Appearance: Sixth (First since 2011)
Head Coach: Chris Holtmann, 70-30 (Third Season)
Top Players: F Andrew Chrabascz: 11.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.1 apg (First Team Big East); F Kelan Martin: 16 ppg, 5.8 rpg (Second Team Big East); G Kamar Baldwin: 10 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.7 spg (Big East Freshmen Team).
How they got here: Butler opened the first round by beating 13-seed Winthrop 76-64. They followed that up with a 74-65 victory over 12-seed Middle Tennessee State in the second round.
Best Case Scenario: Butler does Butler things and squeaks by UNC in the Sweet 16. The Bulldogs continue their reign over the Wildcats, this time the Kentucky version, and make it to the Final Four for the first time since 2011. However, their luck runs out there as they are beaten by Oregon in the Final Four.